Conclusion

This book presents a pioneering solution to one of European patent law’s most pressing challenges: the fragmented adjudication of human dignity as a barrier to patenting biotechnology across seven parallel court regimes. Through comprehensive comparative analysis of ten diverse courts of final appeal – spanning from the UK Privy Council’s millennium-long operation to contemporary human rights tribunals – this book proposes a novel overarching court of final appeal for Europe. The proposed court addresses critical gaps in legal coherence by establishing uniform standards for human dignity in biotech patent cases across 46 European nations. Drawing on successful models including the US Supreme Court’s biotech patents jurisprudence and regional human rights courts, the design features a hybrid composition of patent and human rights specialists operating within a flexible common law framework. This original contribution transcends theoretical discourse by providing a practical blueprint for institutional reform. The novel court would operate under CoE oversight, ensuring binding decisions that promote legal certainty whilst maintaining the adaptability essential for rapidly evolving biotechnology. By synthesising principles from courts with centuries of successful operation, this reform demonstrates that fragmentation in European biotech patent law is not insurmountable, offering a robust pathway towards coherent adjudication of humanity’s most fundamental ethical boundaries in biotechnological innovation.